Love That Transcends Time
by Inali Grimalkin
Summary: An innocent trip back in time leads to some big changes in Wilbur's life when he meets Violet Parr
1. Chapter 1

Looking back Wilbur wasn't sure how it had happened. He'd been seventeen and gone back to do a report on Obama's inauguration, instead of researching it himself, when he saw her. It had been love at first sight, and he had visited her every day for a whole summer before he had been forced to face the truth, they lived in different times, in reality she was 30 something years older than him. So why did he see her now, walking on the other side of the street. He couldn't stop himself; he crossed quickly and called to her.

"Vi? Is that you?" She turned around and looked at him, Wilbur stopped confused.

She looked exactly like Violet but her eyes were a little different, greener than the blue he remembered. "Violet?" He asked suddenly uncertain, this girl was younger than him by about 5 years but Violet should be in her 50s by now. It was strange to think that while he was only twenty three Violet was so much older.

"Violet?" The girl asked. "My name's Viola. Do I know you?" Wilbur shook his head trying to make sense of everything.

"Sorry, I thought you were someone I knew."

"You want to go get a coffee or something?" she blushed and tucked a strand of her black hair behind an ear, pointing to one of the few buildings that still stood from Violet's time. Wilbur's heart skipped a beat, it was their place. The coffee shop they would meet up at, he never would've believed it was still here.

"I don't know," he said unsure, he was so much older than this girl. Was it alright? But she looked at him with pleading eyes, reminding him a lot of his little siblings, "Oh, alright." Going inside it was like entering a time capsule. It had been kept the same way he remembered it. Without even realizing it he led Viola to the place he and Violet used to sit.

"It's a nice place, right?" Viola said sitting down and looking around. "My mom and dad own it. I don't know why, but they wanted to keep it looking like it did, like, thirty years ago or something. They liked the vintage look I guess." Viola shrugged and looked back at Wilbur. "So, what's your name?"

"It's Wilbur, Wilbur Robinson," he told her with a smile, she was so outgoing and nice, he was already having fun spending time with her.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Wilbur Robinson," she said with a giggle as she shook his hand. "So, what're you going to get? I can go grab you a menu if you want. I help Mom out here part time so I know where everything is."

"Nah, it's okay. I think I know what I want. The, um, gingerbread latte?" H\he asked not sure if they still had it.

"That's my favourite! You've been here before I bet. Okay, I'll go make them, be right back," she said getting up and heading back behind the counter. As Wilbur watched he thought back on when he had first gone here, just a couple years ago to him, but decades ago in real time.

* * *

Wilbur parked the time machine and made his way down to the streets so he could do his research. He was mostly going to get a couple newspapers and watch the inauguration. The work was pretty easy since it had happened not too long ago and there were a lot of channels that were going to be showing it. He had decided not to go to Washington just to be sure he wasn't accidentally filmed or anything.

Things that he had learned could disrupt the time stream; just being somewhere so long as he didn't reveal himself to the world would be fine.

After getting two different papers and a magazine that had an article about it he headed over to a little coffee shop to watch the TVs they had. The cafe was pretty nice, it had a warm homey feeling and there were various posters on the walls. Some he recognized others he had no idea what they were from. That was one thing he had noticed, there were quite a few girls wearing 'Team Edward' or 'Team Jacob' shirts. What were those? He'd never heard of it in his time. He shrugged it off, if it didn't make it to his time then it obviously wasn't very good. He sat as close as he could to a TV and watched, taking notes of things that could be important. The comfortable chatter of the other patrons was nice, so different from the loud and crazy things he had at home. Wilbur read various articles and noticed they all had the same sort of hopefully feel to them, he'd probably do a short search when he got back home to, to compare facts between the decades.

It was late afternoon by the time everything was done and he put his things back in his bag. He was about to pay and leave when he saw her. It was as though time froze for a moment. She was sitting by herself in a corner table near the window, reading a book with the warm sunlight streaming in on her giving her an almost angelic glow.

He saw a tear slide down her cheek and he sighed. Instead of leaving he asked what she had ordered and decided to buy two gingerbread lattes. He carried them over to her and sat down on the opposite side of the table.

"Are you alright?" he asked sliding one of the lattes over to her. She looked up, surprised, and wiped away the tear that had been sliding down her cheek.

"I'm sorry, but do I know you?" she asked looking at the full cup he handed her before taking a small sip.

"Sorry, I'm Wilbur," he said holding out a hand she took it and nodded, obviously waiting for him to say more. Wilbur blushed a little; the way her blue eyes were fixed on him was unnerving in a way he had never felt before. It was almost as if they were looking right through him, down to his very core. "I, uh, saw you from over there and it looked like you were crying so I just wanted to make sure you were alright." The girl smiled and lifted up the book that was open on the table.

"Marley and Me," she said putting what looked like an old ticket stub in her book and closing it. "I just got to the saddest part. I won't tell you 'cause it'll ruin it for you if you haven't read it yet."

"Oh," Wilbur said blushing again; he kinda wished he hadn't done anything now. He felt like a total idiot for interrupting her like he was. "Well, so long as you're alright I can leave you alone, um..."

"Violet," she said. Wilbur looked up, confused. What was she talking about?

"That's my name. Violet Parr." She laughed and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "I make you nervous don't I?"

"To be perfectly honest? Yes, yes you do. So do you hang out here on you own a lot?" he asked, taking a big gulp of his latte.

"Yeah, it's my favorite place to go when I want to get away from stuff. What about you?"

"No, this is my first time. I'm from, uh, out of town."

"Oh," Violet said looking sad. "When do you have to leave?"

"Today, probably really soon; my parents don't actually know I'm here," he told her with a sigh as he glanced at his watch. He quickly finished his latte, though it burned his throat, and stood up, "It was nice meeting you Violet," he said as he picked up his bag.

"If you ever get the chance to come back," she said as she quickly opened her book to the first page and wrote something down, "I'll meet you here," she handed him the book and smiled. "Read it, all me if you want to meet up and we can talk about the book."

Wilbur nodded and smiled, taking the book. He waved and left, feeling a deep sinking feeling as he got into the time machine. He wasn't sure if he'd be able to come back.

* * *

**So I had written this story quite some time ago, it was the first fan fictions I've written and published in years so looking back on it now after I've done a few more stories and developed my writing style a bit I could see that this story was riddled with errors. Which is why I'm now going through it chapter by chapter and fixing it up a bit. Be patient ^-^ and please review.**


	2. Chapter 2

Months passed, both in Wilbur's time and in Violet's. He thought about Violet all the time, found himself reading _Marley and Me_ over and over. Violet had been right, the book was sad; he teared up a bit every time he read it.

Finally, on the first day of his summer break, he couldn't take it anymore. He had to see her again. Cornelius Robinson was at work and Franny was doing a new song with her frogs. He wasn't sure where the rest of the family was, but they usually kept out of the garage so he figured he'd be fine.

He carefully placed Violet's book on the seat next to him before punching in the same corresponding date in Violet's time. He had decided that in order to avoid confusion he would travel on the same dates. The days of the week would be different, but it was summer so any error there could be easily passed off as losing track because they all blended together.

He didn't bother telling himself this was going to be the last time he went back because he knew it was a lie. Something about Violet had captivated him and he needed to know more.

Just like the first time he parked the machine and switched on the invisibility. He almost ran to the coffee shop and when he arrived he noticed for the first time that it was called _Java the hut_. Wilbur smiled; it was a cute name and he had of course watched all the old movies it was referencing, even if they were horrible outdated by his standards.

Taking a deep breath Wilbur opened the door and searched for the only face he could consider familiar. His heart fell. He didn't see her. With a sigh Wilbur headed over to the counter to get himself a gingerbread latte. He placed his order, still feeling crestfallen and wasn't really paying attention. _What will I do now?_ he wondered, should he just go home? It wasn't like he could search the entire town for her.

"Wilbur?" A familiar voice asked, breaking into his thoughts. He looked up and found himself staring at Violet. She was behind the counter, wearing an apron and had her raven hair tied up in a high pony tail. He hadn't thought she might be behind the counter and she looked so different with her hair tied back.

"Violet," he said with a smile as he nervously rubbed the back of his neck. Violet smiled in return and handed him his drink before making one for herself.

"I'm going on break Anna!" she called to someone in the back as she walked around the counter. "Come on, let's go sit," she said taking Wilbur by the arm and leading him to the same place they sat the last time Wilbur had been there. "I didn't think I'd ever get to see you again," she told him looking down at her drink.

"Honestly, neither did I, but I really wanted to see you again. I, uh, have your book," he offered as he handed it to her. Violet smiled and shook her head.

"Keep it," she told him gently pushing it back. "I want to know that even if I never get to see you again you'll always have something to remember me by. Wilbur smiled and took her hand.

"That's one of the things I wanted to tell you actually. I'll be able to come and see you this summer. Every day if you want me to. Just tell me when and I'll come. I promise," he said already calculating how to get away with taking the machine out. He hadn't meant to say it, it had just slipped out because he wanted to see her so badly. He knew his mom had a couple out of town concerts that would be keeping her occupied and his dad had a seminar at the end of July that went for a week. It would be hard but he'd manage.

"Really? Okay, um, well as you can see I work here a few days a week, but I'm always off work at four." She looked over to the counter and saw that Anna was starting to give her the 'breaks over' look. "I gotta go back now, but come here tomorrow around four and we'll figure something out alright?" She quickly downed her drink and gave Wilbur a quick wave before heading back behind the counter. Wilbur stayed for a bit and watched her work while he slowly drank his drink. He thought about the week his father was out of town, he wanted to do something extra special with Violet that week because he knew that that was one week for sure that he'd be able to visit without a worry.

Finishing the latte Wilbur headed out the door with a wave to Violet and got to the machine. In a happy sort of daze he flew the time machine back home and had just managed to clean everything up and get out when his dad came down one of the tubes.

"Wilbur? what're you doing down here?" Cornelius asked as he headed over to his car, sparing a quick glance at his son.

"Nothing really, just was reading something in the time machine. The chairs are really comfy and it's quiet," he lied easily, though he felt a twinge of guilt as he did so. Cornelius gave a little chuckle and nod; he understood the need for quiet sometimes in this household. While his dad did some work on one of the cars Wilbur headed up the tubes to his room and turned on his computer. He did a quick search of this that happened during the last week of July in violet's year.

[The Capricornids meteor shower has a conflict on the best night to view. According to Skyscrapers, Inc.1, it is best viewed on the night of July 29th through the early morning hours of July 30th. According to Meteor Showers Online2, this meteor shower is best viewed on the night of August 1st through the early morning hours of August 2nd. Capricornids runs from July 15th through September 11th. You could see up to 15 meteors per hour. Both websites agree that Capricornids is known for producing bright meteors and "fireballs".]

_This is perfect,_ Wilbur thought with a smile. He wrote down the dates and time, cross checking with other websites to make sure he had the right date for when they were brightest.

Getting up he marked the day on his calendar and headed downstairs to dinner, looking forward to the next day as well as the 29th.

* * *

The next day and the ones that followed all ended up blurring together for Wilbur. He spent as much time as he could in Violet's time and they did so much together. They went to the zoo and amusement parks, they would sometimes walk around the town aimlessly for hours just to explore and see what they found. Some days they would just sit in Java, the Hut for hours talking about everything they could think of. They pair of them bonded quickly and Wilbur wondered for the first time if this was what finding your soul mate felt like.

One day Violet had even dragged Wilbur to her family's house for dinner where he got to meet her parents and brothers.

Wilbur told her he wished she could meet his family too, but they didn't live in town. He could tell she didn't really believe his out of town excuse anymore, but she never asked him about it. Something told him that despite their closeness she had secrets from him too.

* * *

One night they had been sitting on a picnic table, playing a game Violet had made up. They each had to think of the most random place they could and try to think of reasons to visit.

"Hmm, the Easter Islands," Wilbur said on his turn. Violet laughed and asked why he chose there. "Are you kidding?" he asked, pretending to be shocked. "The _Easter_ Islands, that place is probably covered with bunny rabbits and chocolate eggs."

"You know it's nothing like that right?" Violet asked between giggles. Wilbur smiled, he liked making her laugh.

There was no decision made, all he knew was he one moment he was admiring her laugh and the next he had leaned in and pressed his lips to hers. Violet froze and Wilbur wondered if he had done the wrong thing, he was just about to pull away when she shyly put her hand on his cheek and kissed back.

When they pulled away Wilbur could see a faint tinge of pink along her cheeks and he felt his own heart pounding. They leaned in again, only they were a little too eager and fast. Wilbur laughed and rubbed the tip of his nose where it had bumped hers.

"Sorry," Violet said softly.

"It's okay," Wilbur told her as he leaned in to try again. It was hesitant, but there was an underlying confidence to it. Wilbur had kissed girls before, but this was the first time he ever felt that moment that all the romance novels and chick flicks talked about. That moment when everything becomes hazy and the only thing there is to focus on is that one person and they realize that they're the only person that they're supposed to kiss for the rest of their life.

* * *

For the first little while Wilbur had tried to stay out of pictures, but eventually he wore down and decided that since the pictures were just going to be with Violet and him it'd be alright. He agreed with the sole condition that they not get posted online, he told her that it was kind of a secret that he was visiting her and he didn't want to get in trouble. A half truth that thankfully she agreed to.

As a result he ended up taking at least one photo home every day. Pictures of them together or places they'd been. Wilbur stored them all in a shoe box hidden under his bed and would find himself looking at them at night when he was alone.

"Violet, meet me on the top of the hill in the park at eight o'clock tomorrow night, okay?" he told her before they said their good-byes on the night of the 28th. Violet nodded and gave him a tight hug while he kissed the top of her head.

"I'll be there right at eight, promise. I can't wait to see what you've got planned!" she said trying to keep the excitement down in her voice but failing. She gave him another hug, almost strangling him before she let him go. As usual Wilbur waved once he was at the end of her drive way then headed back as fast as he could to where he had parked the time machine. He had started parking on the roof of Java, the Hut because it was their meeting point and no matter where they ended up at the end of the night getting there was always easy.

Once he was home he said good night to his family, his parents were both out of town and the rest of his family were easy going enough that he always told them he was going to a friend's house whenever he went to see Violet. They asked no questions and were never surprised no matter what time he came home at.

Wilbur crawled into bed and fell asleep almost instantly, dreaming about the next day.

* * *

**Wow, after nearly two years going back over this story I'm noticing a lot of things that now as a writer I wouldn't do. Some are grammatical things, but others are just how my style has evolved. I hope you like this newly redone chapter, I'm slowly making my way through the rest. Fleshing out scenes and the like. Please feel free to drop a review and let me know if there's anything you think i should add to make the story better.**


	3. Chapter 3

Wilbur couldn't believe it, Violet was late. It was almost nine already. It wasn't like her and she had seemed so excited about tonight. He wondered briefly if she had found someone, but he quickly brushed that thought away, no she wasn't like that. He sighed and was about to lay down on the blanket when he saw a familiar shape running up the hill towards him.

"I'm so sorry!" Violet cried as she collapsed on the blanket.

"It's alright, I didn't mind waiting," he reassured her though he did wonder where she was and why she was so out of breath, it wasn't the first time she had been late or had to leave early. "Vi, can I ask you something?"

"You want to know where I was," she stated with a wry smile as though she knew what was going on in his mind. "Wilbur, have you ever had a secret, one that you were never supposed to share?" Wilbur nodded but kept quiet thinking if he interrupted she might change her mind about telling him anything. "Well, I trust you Wilbur, more than anyone so I'll tell you and I really mean it when I say my life depends on you keeping it a secret alright? My family and I, we're different from other people. We're, well , super heroes I guess you could say. What I'm trying to say is, I'm… Invisigirl." As she said the last word she let herself go invisible to prove to him that she wasn't crazy. Wilbur's jaw dropped, he hadn't expected that at all. He wasn't overly familiar with the supers of that time but he had heard of the Inredibles.

"Well, if it's secret time then I guess I should tell you my secret too. I'm from the future. The day we met I had travelled back so I could do research about Obama's inauguration and get details and things that my classmates might have missed." He got up quick and turned off the invisible shield that had been put on the time machine. "This is how I go from your time to mine," he said as he turned the shield back on and sat down again. "Maybe next week I'll take you somewhere alright?"

"When are you from?" Violet asked, if people with super powers could exist it wasn't so hard to accept time travelers. Wilbur shook his head and pointed to the sky. Confused Violet looked up, wondering what she was supposed to be looking.

"Later," Wilbur whispered as he lay down on the blanket pulling Violet with him. "It's starting." Violet glanced at him, still not sure what was supposed to be starting when she saw it, shooting stars everywhere. She had never seen such a beautiful sight, and here on the huge hill in the park they were alone with a great view.

"Let's dance," Violet said after a bit as she sat up and looked in her bag.

"Dance?" Wilbur asked confused as he also sat up. "There's no music."

"Yes there is," Violet told him as she pulled out her iPod and selected a song. She attached a small set of portable speakers to it and hit play. "Come on," she urged as she pulled him up to stand with her. Wilbur pretended to groan but got up quickly and wrapped his arms around her waist keeping Violet close as they slowly revolved under the stars.

_"You'll find better love_

_Strong as it ever was_

_Deep as the river runs_

_Warm as the morning sun_

_Please remember me"_

"This is one of my favourite songs," Violet whispered and she snuggled into Wilbur's shoulder.

"What's it called?" Wilbur asked, he wanted to remember this moment forever.

"Please Remember Me, by Tim McGraw."

"Then, from now on this will be our song," Wilbur said before he kissed Violet deeply. She sighed and as the music still played in the back ground he lowered her back down onto the blanket. "I love you, Violet."

"I love you too Wilbur."

Wilbur kissed Violet softly on the cheek as he put his sweater on her. He was wearing a tee shirt and jeans but Violet was just wearing her jeans and a tank top. "It smells like you," she told him with a smile as she pulled it tightly around her. Wilbur smiled back as he folded the blanket and tossed it into the time machine before turning back to Violet.

"I'll see you tomorrow alright? Meet you at our place," he told her as he brushed a strand of her hair behind her ear. "I love the way your blue eyes shine, it's more beautiful than the stars. And I love your long dark hair. You're perfect." He kissed her again on the lips and climbed into the time machine.

Violet watched him go then she picked up her purse and began the walk home as the sun rose behind her. She knew her parents wouldn't be please she had stayed out all night but they knew she was with Wilbur, whom they both liked, and she was 18 after all. True she had just turned 18 a couple months ago but still.

The next afternoon she went to Java, the hut and got both of their lattes and waited for Wilbur.

But he never came.

She waited for hours, ended up drink both lattes and had he never showed up. So she thought maybe he was sleeping still, an all nighter must be tough for a time traveler. She left and came back the next day. And the one after that, doing the same thing each time. She bought two drinks and waited. On the third day she paid the tab and walked home as it began to rain, she was getting soaked but she didn't care. Maybe Wilbur was just like every other guy in the world. He'd had sex with her, she had given him her virginity and then he was gone. On the walk home she had bought ten dollars worth of gummi worms and a litre of Sprite, her two comfort foods. She ended up eating them all on the rest of the walk.

"Honey, what's wrong?" Bob asked when she came into the house soaking wet, with her dark hair plastered to her face. Bob wasn't happy that she had spent the night out with Wilbur the other day but he had heard about the meteor shower on the news and knew it was an all night thing. That Wilbur kid was a nice boy and had waited for Violet even after their battle with the Underminer.

Violet ignored him and ran to the bathroom, locking the door behind her. She bent over the toilet and ended up throwing up in fizzy, technicolour as tears streamed down her face. Helen knocked on the door as Violet flushed the toilet and rinsed her mouth.

"Vi? Honey, are you alright?" She asked through the door. Violet ignored her too as she found a small pair of scissors that were in the back of the drawer. For once she was thankful that Dash liked playing pranks and moving items into random rooms.

She looked at her reflection in the mirror and slowly touched a strand of hair that fell in front of her eyes. She picked up the scissors and chopped it off. Strangely, seeing the long dark hair fall into the sink made her feel a little better. She pulled another and another and kept cutting them off watching as they fell around her on the floor and in the sink. She heard her mother calling to her then calling to her father. Then she heard her father calling to her and him pound on the door. She ignored it all and kept cutting all of her hair.

Suddenly the bathroom door broke open. Violet turned to look at her parents, a dead look in her eyes. Helen gasped when she saw her daughter. What could've happened to make her do this, she came home so happy the other day. Violet began crying, it was strange but until she saw the looks on her parent's faces she had just felt numb but now she cried and fell to her knees on the floor. Bob picked her up and cradled her like she was a baby as she sobbed into his shoulder. Helen quickly cleaned up the hair and put away the scissors then headed to Violet's room. Bob sat there on Violet's bed, still holding her in his arms as she cried.

"I'll take it from here," she said softly as she went into Violet's closet and pulled out her purple fleece pajamas that she usually wore when she was sick. Bob nodded, feeling lost. His baby was hurting and there was nothing he could do to fix it. He went down to the basement and did training exercises to work out his frustration, hitting everything a lot harder then he usually did.

Helen meanwhile, helped her daughter change into her cozy pajamas. "You want to talk about it?" She asked as she hung the wet clothes up to dry.

"It's been three days, Mom," she said quietly as she hugged her knees close to her body.

"I know you always meet him at that coffee shop but have you tried calling him?" Helen asked, sitting down on the bed.

"I can't call him. He's not from here. He's not even from out time," she said bitterly. "He's from the future, he can time travel," she said, it was easier to let her mom think he was a super then explain the whole machine thing.

"Well did you guys get into a fight after the meteor shower?" She asked, she wanted to find out more about the time travel thing but she figured she'd let it go for now, she'd heard crazier things. Violet shook her head so Helen tried again. "Well, maybe he's busy, you know? Maybe he went out of town or has really important stuff to do in his time. Maybe it has nothing to do with you."

"We did it, okay?" Violet shouted knowing that none of those things would happen; he had told her he'd see her the next day. "We did it and now he doesn't come back!"

"You did it?" Helen asked shocked.

"That's right," Violet said angrily. Helen sighed, there wasn't anything she could do to help her and now wasn't the time for talks about safe sex.

"I'm so sorry Sweet Heart, do you want me to stay with you for a bit?" Violet shook her head and crawled under the covers.

"No, I'd rather just be alone for a bit." Helen nodded and tucked Violet in like she used to when she was little. After she had shut off the light and left Violet reached for her iPod and found the play list that had been playing that night and cried herself to sleep.

_"It hurts to know how much she'll hurt I've told myself things could be worse_

_And I've convinced myself she's better off this way_

_By the time she finds I'm gone_

_I'll be a long, long way from home_

_When she reads a note of things I couldn't say"_


	4. Chapter 4

"Wilbur Octavius Clifford Robinson!" Wilbur froze at the sound of his father's voice; he had never heard him so angry or even use his full name like that. He turned slowly to face him, he hadn't even seen him when he landed the time machine but there he was, looking like he had been waiting a while.

"Hi Dad, you're home early," he said lightly trying to pretend nothing was wrong.

"My trip was cut short when I received a phone call from your mother absolutely frantic. It seems she had called to check on the house since we were both away and she had asked to speak to you and the twins. Demelza and Darwin both spoke to her but you were nowhere to be found. You had said you were at a friend's but none of your friends have seen you in weeks apparently. So I left the conference early to help search for you and what do I find when I get home? One of the machines gone. I don't even want to know how many times you've gone back or to where. Go to your room. Now."

Wilbur hung his head and took the stairs to his room to avoid accidentally running into anyone. He closed his bedroom door and swore as he slumped to the floor. He was busted, he'd be lucky if he'd be allowed to leave his room for days let alone go anywhere near the machine again for a couple months. He thought of Violet, he had promised to see her the next day and now he'd probably have to wait months before he saw her again. Feeling sick he crawled over to his bed and pulled out the box of photos. Eventually, exhausted, he fell asleep surrounded in Violet.

He awoke the next morning to the smell of fire. He wasn't worried, more curious on what could be burning. He looked out his bedroom window and saw his dad doing a small bonfire; he wondered why but decided he'd better not ask because he was still in trouble. A little while later his father came in and gave him a list of chores to do as punishment before he headed back to the meetings he was supposed to be attending. Wilbur scanned the list and had planned to do the worst chores first, brushing Ty- Rex's teeth, but then he saw that one of them was cleaning the garage and everything in it. Starting with the machines. He smiled, as if he was being allowed to go near them so soon, as he made his way downstairs he didn't see any of his family or even Carl or Lefty. It was odd considering he was supposed to be getting punished. He swore he was just going to go back quickly to tell Violet he was grounded so he wouldn't be able to see her for a bit.

Getting inside one of the machine he went to enter the date into the key pad when he realized it wasn't there. Frantic he got out and checked under the machine. His father had taken out the data input screen and removed the flux capacitor. Quickly he scrambled over to the second machine and he saw the same thing, both data input and flux capacitor were gone. He swore loudly, using phrases he'd never say in front of his mother for fear of getting beaten, and kicked the machine he was next to. Without the data input and flux capacitor they machines were no different than regular flying cars. He started doing the chore of cleaning the garage when he realized something. He had been able to recognize right away what was missing and he had used the machines so often he knew them pretty well. He may not be Cornelius Robinson but he was his son and pretty darn good at mechanics. If he could find the pieces, or even figure out how to build his own based off his father's notes he'd be able to see Violet again.

With energy he didn't even know he had he cleaned the entire garage searching for the notes, after that he slowly and methodically worked through every other room in the entire house, even the ones he knew they probably wouldn't be just in case his dad had decided to hide them.

But he found nothing. He searched for days, even took a trip to his dad's office and scanned the hard drives of all of his computers and asked Carl if he had them to no avail. Then he remembered the bonfire.

Wilbur wasn't eating or sleeping well. It had been a week and he still hadn't thought of anything he could do to go and see Violet. Finally he decided he'd have to do it the old fashioned way. In his spare time he attended his father's lectures about quantum mechanics and anything that might prove useful to fixing the machines. If Cornelius and Franny knew what their son was up to they said nothing. And after each lecture, trip to the library to read books Cornelius had written and visits to his work to search the files in case he missed even some small clue that may lead to figuring out the machines he would go to the garage and work until he was exhausted.

This went on for a year.

For 365 days Wilbur tried everything he could do to fix the machine but nothing worked. As much as he hated to admit it, it was time to give up.

He'd never get to see Violet in her time again, but it didn't limit him to trying to find her in his. He was sure he'd be able to find her, he doubted she'd get married when she must know he'd come find her. He searched all of the public data bases trying to find Violet Parr. But he never did, it was as though after 2016 she just disappeared.

Filled with hopelessness and depression Wilbur gave up for good in a way. He couldn't find a trace of her in his time and until he could fix the machines he couldn't see her in hers either. He decided to focus all of his energy on school, hoping that he'd eventually learn the secrets to the flux capacitor.

For five years it continued, his family worried about him but there was nothing they could do. At time Cornelius and Franny thought that perhaps they'd done the wrong thing by taking away the only thing he wanted but Cornelius remained firm in the belief that the time stream could've been greatly affected by his blatant disregard, though he took to staying up late at night researching something that no one knew about.

His friends meanwhile drifted off, they slowly stopped inviting him to things and calling him until Wilbur was alone with only a box beneath his bed to keep him company.


	5. Chapter 5

Violet was at a loss. She didn't leave her room for days and it took her weeks before she'd leave the house again. She chose to stay home and watch Jack-Jack while her family went out to fight the bad guys.

It turned out her reluctance to go out and fight was the right choice. Three weeks after she chopped off all of her hair and got sick she wasn't doing great. She had cramps like it was that time of the month but it wasn't and she would get sick a lot. She left the house for the first time to go to the corner store and bought a pregnancy test, in fact she bought a couple just to be sure. After she put Jack-Jack down for his nap she did one of the tests.

It said positive.

Just to be sure she waited until the next morning before she did the second one, the box had said it was better to do it in the morning anyway.

That one was positive too. So, that night she sat her parents down after Jack-Jack had gone to bed and Dash was watching TV.

"Mom, Dad, I'm pregnant," Violet said with a sigh. She sat in an arm chair facing her parents on the couch, if she wasn't so depressed it would probably be funny because of how incredibly awkward the set up was.

"Oh, God." Helen gasped putting a hand over her mouth, she had suspicions after all she knew Violet and Wilbur had been involved and Violet was sick a lot lately.

"You're pregnant?" Bob repeated, stunned. He didn't even know his baby was active like that, he had trusted her judgment and let her spend all the time she wanted alone with Wilbur.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, but if it makes you feel any better I can barely keep down water and I have cramps so bad I want to crawl into a corner and die," she told them forcefully. She still wasn't anywhere near being back to her old self but there were a few glimmers of the old Violet.

"I'm going to kill that Wilbur kid if I ever see him again," Bob threatened, clenching his fist in anger. He knew the odds were slim since Helen filled him in on the time traveler bit but it made him feel better to say it.

"Well Vi, you're 18. You know what this means so what are you going to do?" Helen asked trying to stay calm and doing a far better job than Bob was.

"Well, I know it will be tough but I was thinking of keeping it. Because in high school they were talking about in health class how pregnancy can often lead to an infant." She shrugged, she couldn't say it out loud but the little life growing inside of her was one of the only things she had left of Wilbur. That and his sweater.

So Violet had her room rearranged, she moved in the baby things that Jack-Jack had outgrown but their parents hadn't gotten rid of like crib and changing table into her room. She went to the doctor regularly and continued working at Java, the hut. They were glad to have her back after her few weeks of calling in sick. The entire staff of course knew a bit about what happened between her and Wilbur and were excited to hear about the baby and loved her short hair. Violet steadily grew bigger and it seemed she returned to normal. She smiled, laughed and talked just like she used to.

At least, she did when she was with other people. When she was alone she would look out the window and remember the best days of her life, or when she was feeling extra masochistic she'd day dream about what this whole experience would be like if Wilbur was there. He'd be scared, but happy she imagined. They'd spend hours watching parenting movies, reading name books and checking out prenatal classes. Sometime she was even able to almost convince herself that her day dreams were real, then she'd remember something small and her dream world would fade away.

For 37 weeks Violet went about her daily life, she worked, did part time classes at the local college to get herself a business degree. Then, on May 6th 2010, after three hours of contractions and another three hours of labour a tiny little baby opened her eyes to the world for the first time.

Swaddled in pink and sleeping soundly in Violet's arms, surrounded by her family she was given the name Summer Wilhelmina Parr.

Meanwhile, in another time Wilbur sat in a café talking to Viola. She chattered on about herself, she was 16 had two older siblings a sister and a brother. Her sister was several years older than her because her mom had had her really young so she was turning 30 soon and her brother was 21.

"So my class is doing this thing where you have to bring in a mentor for a couple weeks, I was wondering if you could be my mentor?" Viola asked as she finished her drink.

"Why don't you ask your siblings?" He asked, he had only just met her though it seemed as though they knew each other for a while.

Viola shook her head. "You can't," she explained batting her mug back and forth like a hockey puck. "You can't be related to them."  
"Well, what am I supposed to do as your mentor?"  
"You have to listen, advise, support, encourage, constructively criticize and guide me," she said almost as though she were reciting a boring lesson. "Basically I think you have to be the person I can go to when I can't go to my parents. So can you? I've looked around the local universities but no one really caught my eye as someone I want to be my mentor. And I already know you're a good listener."

"Alright, I'll be your mentor," he told her with a smile. It felt as though he hadn't smiled in so long, maybe he needed to be around this girl. For the first time in the six years since he lost Violet he felt like his old carefree self. Maybe it was time to move on, he was a bit too old for this girl, she seemed more like a little sister than a potential girlfriend but it seemed as though he was finally moving in the right direction.

"Great!" She cried clapping her hands together. "So I've got to go home for dinner and tell my parents I've found my mentor but if you're not doing anything tomorrow we should get together. I need help deciding what courses I'd like to take next year and my parents are trying to push me into different things. Oh, and you can come for dinner at our place. It's Wednesday and that's ethnic night, Mom likes to try cooking food from different nationalities. I think tomorrow is either French or Italian. Be thankful it was Mexican, she makes it way too spicy," she said with a laugh as she gathered her bag and their empty mugs. "So I'll meet you here tomorrow okay? About 4 o'clock?" Wilbur nodded agreement and Viola headed out.


	6. Chapter 6

"So my family is looking forward to meeting you," Viola said as they put away the booklets later. "You won't get to meet everyone though, Dad was invited to some meeting and Patrick's going out to dinner with his girlfriend."

"That's okay," Wilbur said as he held toe café door open for her, letting her lead. "I'll get to meet them another time." Viola nodded and the walk to her family home wasn't too long and though the house was smaller than the home he grew up in he loved it immediately. It was white and the entire front of the house was windowed.

"Do you like it?" Viola asked as she pushed open the gate and walked inside. "My Dad built it. I saw pictures of what it looked like before. Apparently it was an old library that was going to be torn down so he bought it and re did the whole thing."

"Oh yeah? What's your dad do?" He asked as he followed her inside and looked around; the colours were bright and used a lot of blue. He smiled, he liked it here, and it seemed quieter than his family home.

"He's an architect. He mostly does houses. I'm going to put my stuff upstairs and get changed; Mom doesn't like it when I wear my uniform at dinner. Mom! My mentor's here!" She called as she slipped out of her shoes and ran upstairs. Wilbur walked slowly to the living room looking around falling more in love with the decorating each minute.

"Hi, it's nice to meet you, " a woman's voice said from behind him. Wilbur turned around and at first he thought it was Helen, Violet's mom. Then he realized the truth.

"Violet?" He asked softly not daring to believe it, he had tried to find her for so long and she was hidden in his town the whole time. She owned their café and was so close without even knowing it.

"Wilbur," she whispered and covered her mouth with a hand as she sat down on a couch. Her hair was long like he remembered but there was grey framing her face that was never there before and fine laugh lines around her eyes. Considering she was nearly 50 by now she looked remarkably well, the super gene must help with that. Viola must be a super too then. His stomach lurched, Viola was Violet's daughter.

"Violet, how are you?" He asked, not sure what there was to say. It had been six years since he saw her and 30 since she had seen him. Where did they stand?

"How do you think I am?" She demanded quietly, not wanting to alert her children upstairs. "You come waltzing back into my life like a ghost from my past."  
"Violet, I never meant to leave you for so long. I-"  
"Why didn't you visit me? Why? It wasn't over for me, I waited for you for seven years. But now it's too late. " Violet cried softly, her eyes shining with tears.

"I tried to visit you every day for a year. My father disabled the time machines." Wilbur argued taking her hands and looking her in the eye. "For 365 days I tried to fix them, to get them working again but I couldn't do it. I'm not a genius like he is and I couldn't figure it out. I read all of his books, went to lectures and classes and read all his notes and plans but everything about the machines was gone. Believe me it wasn't over for me either. It still doesn't have to be."  
"Yes, it does Wilbur." Violet told him pulling her hand away and hugging herself. "I'm old, so much older now then when I was in my twenties waiting for you to come back. I have a family now as you well know, it would be wrong for anything to happen between us." She sighed and looked at a picture of her family on the mantel. "That's why I have to ask you to stay away from Viola. No gifts, no promises, no advice. Nothing. You'll only break her heart when she realizes she can't keep you."  
"Violet I swear I still love you and I know I had so much less time to deal with the pain of losing you but believe me when I say that Viola is the only other person I've ever cared about and I think she cares about me too. I don't love her the way I love you, she's like a sister to me but can't I still be her friend?"  
"No," Violet said firmly as she stood up. "Now I'm going to ask you to leave, and please don't contact Viola or myself again. Good bye Wilbur." She turned and went upstairs, probably to talk to Viola about why she'd need to find a new mentor. Wilbur sighed and headed towards the door. As he left he saw a girl a few years older than him, presumably Viola's sister, watching him go. She had very familiar eyes and her black hair was cut short with blue streaks in the front. She smiled at him before vanishing from sight. Wilbur sighed and headed back home, feeling as though he had lost Violet a second time.

~~~~~~~~~~~~  
It's been five years since Wilbur left and Summer is now four years old and is excited about going to school next year. She hears her Uncles Jack and Dash talk about all the time. Jack is now nine, Dash is 17. Violet's 23 and doing well. She learned to move on with her life, though she still though about Wilbur a bit every day the pain was easier to bear. She still worked at Java, the hut, as manager and had graduated college.

Violet was working one day as usual when she saw someone she hadn't seen in years.

Her old boyfriend, Tony.

It started out as small talk, the usual catching up but then he asked her out. She remembered the only reason they had broken up was that he was going to school out of country and long distance would be too hard. To her surprise, she accepted.

For her first date since Wilbur Violet tried really hard to look nice, even though this didn't really count as a first date. She still had her hair pretty short; it only hit her shoulders so she left it down. Wearing a crème coloured dress with a gray meadow motif and flowered wedges she put a smile on Tony's face when he picked her up that evening. She kissed her daughter good night and left.

It was the nicest night she's had since that fateful one so long ago. Tony took her to a local art gallery and surprised her by showing some of his work there. He had gone to England to study photography and now was a successful photographer with some of his work appearing in galleries like this one. She felt as though she had entered a whole new world surrounded by paintings, prints, and sculptures. They spent the dinner talking about their favourite pieces, debating over what they would buy if they could own one thing in the gallery. She laughed and smiled more than she had in a long time. Maybe it was time to move on for good.

So the dates continued. Helen and Bob were happy to see her dating again and often invited Tony over for dinner. It didn't bother Tony that Violet had a daughter, or lived with her parents, or still worked at a coffee shop. He was falling for her again, and Violet enjoyed spending time with him.p.  
But she wasn't sure if she loved him.

About a year after that, at Violet's 24th birthday party Tony led her away from the family to talk to her.

"Violet, I've been thinking a lot about why we shouldn't get married," Tony told her seriously. She looked at him surprised, this wasn't what she was expecting when he led her away.

"Well why shouldn't we get married?" She asked confused.

"Well see, that's the thing, I couldn't think of anything at first. And then, it just dawned on me," he said as he paced back and forth. "You see, the problem is that they love me."

"They do," she agreed, watching him getting more confused by the minute.

"I'm exactly the type of man they want you to end up with. I've got a decent job, I'm smart, I care about your daughter and I can provide for you."

"So what's the problem, huh?" She asked crossing her arms getting frustrated.

"If you marry me, then you will have lost a lifelong battle to defy them," he said with a small smile as he stopped pacing."

"Well then what are we going to do about that?" she asked catching on to the joke finally.

"See Violet, I think you have to marry me. Because if you do, your parents will always know the unhappiness that you feel for not being able to disappoint them," he replied, smiling broadly now.p.

"I think you may have overlooked one minor detail. You see you have to get their permission first. And I think you may have overestimated their affection for you."

"Oh, I don't think so. Cause I asked them already," he said kneeling down in front of her and pulling a small black box from his pocket. "And they said yes."

"What?" Violet gasped looking down at him.

"I love you. Will you, Violet Parr, marry me?" She nodded and kissed him then turned to see her family watching and smiling. Dash and Summer even gave her a thumbs up.

But a few weeks later, even though she had said yes she still felt doubts. Tony knew about Wilbur a bit, he didn't know about the future, he only knew that she had loved him and he had broken her heart. With the wedding set for after her 25th birthday, giving them about a year to prepare, Violet and tony were very busy with the preparations. While going over who was supposed to be in the wedding party Violet decided to say her worries out loud, just to get them off her chest.

"When I'm with Wilbur I feel like one person and when I'm with you I feel like someone totally different," she said with a sigh as she counted the number of bridesmaids she needed. They'd mostly be friends she had made at Java, the hut.

"Don't be getting cold feet on me now," he told her cupping her chin in his hand. " Vi, it's normal not to forget your first love but I want you for myself. I don't want to convince my fiancée that she should be with me."

"You don't have to. I already know I should be with you." But she knew what a lie felt like. Though it didn't really seem to matter, Wilbur was gone. If anything he'd just be a baby now in her time, she'd never see him again.


	7. Chapter 7

Wilbur stormed up the steps and slammed the front door closed behind him. His family stopped what they were doing and looked at him. He ignored them all and continued up to his room. Once inside and alone he sunk to the floor and retrieved the now worn box of Violet's photos. He spread the photos around him, he had wanted to burn them, get rid of them and move on but seeing them around him he just couldn't do it.

"So, that's the girl," Franny said sitting down next to him. Wilbur jumped, he hadn't even heard her come in. She picked up one of the photos, a shot of Wilbur and Violet making goofy faces. She smiled and put it back down. "She's a beautiful girl, Wilbur."

"Why did I have to leave her Mom?" Wilbur asked as tears welled up in his eyes. Franny pulled him into a hug the way she did when he was young and stroked his hair.

"I don't know baby. And even if I did I know it wasn't fair. You can't help who you fall in love with."

"I'd give anything to see her again," he whispered and he clung to her, he wondered when she got so small and fragile feeling. He remembered her being big and strong.

"Even if it meant giving us up forever?" Franny asked lifting Wilbur's chin so he'd look at her.

"I'd never want to lose you, Mom. I just wish there was some way I could have her and still be able to see everyone here. But Dad said I can never go back so it doesn't really matter."Franny gave Wilbur a kiss on the forehead and left, she hated seeing him like this. Cornelius had just gotten back from a special meeting and she wanted to talk to him about Wilbur.

"This has got to stop Cornelius," she said once they were alone away from prying family ears. "Wilbur barely eats, he barely speaks. It's been six years and I can't watch my son live like this anymore. There has to be a way for him to see that girl."

"I think I may have found a way. But like I told you before, if he goes back he can't come home again. Living in two times is too hard on the time stream; it causes all sorts of paradoxes. He'd have to commit to living in the past and never have contact with us in that time."

"Can we go back and see him?" She asked, Wilbur was her first born she couldn't just give him up completely.

"I've done some calculations and as long as we only ever go back to visit now and then I think it would be alright. It's trying to live in two lives that can't be done."

"What will happen to the Wilbur here? If he has to go back and stay back what will we say?"  
"We'll have to pretend he's dead. For all intents and purposes in this time, he will be."

The next morning Cornelius called Wilbur down to the garage and he handed him the keys to one of the time machines.

"Dad, what's this? I don't get it," he said confused and he looked at the keys.

"I'm letting you go back. Go and find Violet."

"You said I could never go back. You said that it would create disturbances in the time stream."

"What I said is that you could never go back as Wilbur Robinson and try and live in two times. I did some research Wilbur, that girl you went back to visit so often got married and had children-"

"I know that Dad! I lost the only person I've ever loved and now I've seen her family, a family that should've been mine!"

"That family could be yours Wilbur!" Cornelius shouted back getting impatient. "As I was saying, Violet Parr married a man but I was unable to get any concrete information about him and Violet refused to speak to me.  
"Yes, it seems that while the time stream can be changed for the negative like what happened with my old friend Goob it can also be changed for the good. Go back to the past, take your mother's maiden name and live there. Try to win Violet back. If you do then that girl Viola may cease to exist. It's called the ontological paradox. But you'll have Violet."

"But if I go back to the past, I'll never be able to see you again." Wilbur argued; as much as he loved Violet he couldn't just abandon his family. Then it dawned on him, his mom knew he would be given the choice. Everyone knew he would have to choose between blood or love.

"Yes you will. You, my son, will have to commit to a time. If Violet is truly what you want then you will have to take the time machine and not come back to this time. Your mother and I will be able to visit now and then but that's all I'm afraid. If you go to the past to stay, the you that lives here now will be, for all intents and purposes, dead. Or you could stay here and forget about Violet once and for all."

"Dad I'm older than when I last went back. If I go back it'll have to be six years after when I stopped going. That's a long time to make someone wait. What if Violet doesn't want me back?"

"Keep trying for a bit but if you're sure she doesn't want you then come home. I set the time machine to only have two travels. One to the past and one to our time. If you decide to stay then set it on auto pilot and send it here." Wilbur nodded and gave his dad a hug. Cornelius held him tightly for a moment then let go and handed him a duffel bag. "It was your mother's idea. She wanted to be sure you had enough to get started and had a few things from home. She and the rest of the family wanted to be here to see you off but they were worried you'd change your mind. Good luck, my son."

Wilbur took the duffle bag and got into the time machine carefully setting the date to the day he was supposed to meet Violet, 6 years later. He looked out the window as he began to drive out and noticed everyone, His mother, Grandpa Bud, Grandma Lucille, Uncle Fritz, Aunt Petunia, Uncle Dimitri, Uncle Spike, Uncle Gaston, Aunt Billie , Uncle Art, Tallulah, Laszlo, his siblings Demelza and Darwin, Carl, Ty-Rex and Lefty, come out of their hiding places to see him off. He put on a smile and he waved good bye, next thing he knew he was under the invisibility shield and heading to Java, the hut. Even though it had been years he still did everything the same as he always did. He parked the machine and locked it, taking the duffel bag with him, and headed down to the street. The first thing he wanted to do was go to Violet's house and beg her to take him back but he knew that wouldn't work.

So instead he did the hardest thing he could imagine. He walked in the opposite direction and set about find a newspaper or internet café to find apartments for rent. He didn't want to just show up in Violet's life with nothing this time, he wanted to do things right.

Wilbur found a small internet café and sat down at a computer feeling almost lost. He needed to find a job and a place to live before he could even try to get Violet back and he couldn't get one without the other. With a sigh he decided to open up his bag and see what the family had packed for him.

Inside the bag were some of his favourite clothes, two photo albums, enough money to last him a couple months rent in a small place and some forged documents to get him set up. Curious Wilbur took out the documents to see what was there. He had a birth certificate, high school diploma and a university diploma. The university diploma had the courses he had taken in his time, mostly mechanics because he had tried to fix the machines himself but he also had two years of master of architecture that he had taken for fun. That's when it hit him, he get a job with an architecture agency or even a construction site if he had to.

It took a few hours but he found some job listings for both construction work and architecture agencies and he even found a small bachelor apartment that he was lucky enough to get almost on the spot because the current occupant needed to get someone to take it off her hands immediately.

Wilbur slept in a cheap motel for the first night and the next day, after dropping off his things in his new home he went for a few job interviews. He felt as though he had some super natural luck that helped him through the first two days of being alone. It wasn't until he was home that night and he stood looking at his place that he felt how hard it would be and how alone he was, for the first time in his life there wasn't anyone he could go to.


	8. Chapter 8

"Mommy, I just saw Daddy," Summer said looking out the window of Java, the hut a piece of paper and crayons spread out in front of her. Violet looked over at her daughter as she cleared away tables.

"You saw Tony? He's supposed to be at work," Violet mumbled to herself.

"No, not Tony. Daddy. Look I drawed a picture of him," she said and held up a childish drawing. Violet looked at it and gasped, even though it was a child's drawing she recognized Wilbur instantly.

"Summer sweetie, you never met your daddy, did you copy a picture of him from somewhere?"  
"No I saw him! He was right there," Summer argued pointing to the street. Violet sighed and decided to let Summer think whatever she liked, though she wondered how Summer could know what Wilbur looked like. There were no pictures of him up anywhere and no one spoke of him. She wondered if her daughter might have telepathic powers and saw him in someone's mind.

Summer watched her mother walk away and looked back at her drawing realizing something was missing. The line was missing. She picked up her pink crayon and drew the line. A year ago she had started to see lines, putting people and all sorts of things together. She wasn't big enough to understand some of lines, but the ones that were tied to people she understood. Every line was a different colour, colours she didn't know names for. She knew that the man outside was her daddy, the lines proved it. No one else could see the lines and you couldn't touch them but they were there.

After work and Summer was tucked into bed Violet phoned Tony just to be sure he had gone to work.

"So how was work today?" She asked after they had said their greetings.

"Good," he replied. "I got everything set up to start my next project. I'm doing a small apartment next to the art museum, it'll mostly be for art students so small and reasonably priced. I'll be doing all the art work and giving letting them know what I'm looking for then the rest is up to the architects. My first step into architecture," Tony said with a laugh before he asked about Violet's day.

Wilbur woke up early the next morning for work, still amazed that he had been able to get a job so soon.

Once he was actually there however he realized that he had only got it because they had just gotten a job and their old documenter had taken a job out of town. Wilbur had to do mostly a lot of gofer work bringing documents to different people in the office and after lunch he had to do the documenting f a new deal between some artist wanting to build a small apartment for art students and the company. Wilbur took detailed notes about the guy's plan and once the meeting was over he was about to take them to his superior when he overheard him answer his phone.

"Hi Violet, how's your day off?" Wilbur paused and listened, this guy was talking to someone named Violet, could it be his Violet? He made a show of checking over his papers so he could eavesdrop. "So how's dress shopping? I know, I know you can't tell me what it looks like. I'm glad you found something. Still need a flower girl dress for Summer and bridesmaid dresses right? Well let me know what colour you choose so I can get the groomsmen tuxes sorted out. Okay, love you, see you later."Hanging up the phone the guy turned to see Wilbur still there.

"Sorry, just making sure I got everything," Wilbur muttered lamely. "So you're getting married?" He asked knowing it was no use pretending he hadn't heard.

"Yup to an old high school sweet heart. The name's Tony by the way Tony Rydinger," he said holding out a hand.

"Wilbur Gladstone," Wilbur replied shifting his papers and returning the handshake. "Well we'll be seeing a lot of each other through this project, my best wishes to you and your fiancée. When is the wedding?"

"Well, her birthday, and her daughter's, are beginning of May so we decided to get married June third, eleven more months. Well I'll see you next time Will, take care."

Wilbur nodded feeling a sinking feeling. While he wasn't sure if that Violet was his Violet he now had a time limit. After Tony left and Wilbur was alone he slammed his fist against the table and swore.

"I was stupid to think that she'll want me back," he remembered how Viola had said her father was an architect that's why he had tried to get a job with an architectural agency, that and he was good at it. But Tony was an artist, he was going to be doing the designs for his apartments, he was closer to being an architect then he was. Wilbur went home that night and made a plan. He'd slowly let her know he was back, and that he still loved her. He knew throwing himself at her wouldn't work and he couldn't move too fast. He had hurt her and needed to go slow, just not too slow or she'd be married, so he decided that once a month he'd do something for her and hopefully by May 10th, her birthday, she'd know he was back and he could try to get her back.

The first thing he did was go to his bag and take out the battered old copy of 'Marley and Me' that he had kept since the first time he met Violet. If he was going to remind her of him he might as well start from the beginning. Taking out an envelope he wrote a short note and enclosed the same bookmark she had used all those years ago. It was only a small picture taken from the newspaper of the Incredibles when supers resurfaced. He sealed the envelope, walked to Violet's house and slid the envelope under the door, feeling as though he was losing what little of her he had.

Meanwhile

"You know Vi, I think I might try my hand at architecture," Tony was saying that night at dinner. "I love the idea of being able to create homes and buildings. What do you think?"

"I think you're a wonderful artist and should keep doing that but if you really want to get into architecture I won't stop you."

"There was this guy I met today, he's just an assistant or something with the architecture firm but he'll be a full-fledged architect someday if he wants. Name was Will. Nice guy, I might ask him about where he took his education and see if it's something I'd like to try."

"Well, wait until after the wedding before you start school again, okay?"

"Alright I promise," Tony said and talk shifted towards the wedding preparations as it always seemed to do.

"Mommy, there's a paper on the floor, it's for you," Summer said suddenly getting up and going to the front door. She had seen her dad slid it under the door and she knew it was for her mommy. Violet exchanged looks with her family, it was slightly unnerving sometimes how Summer always seemed to know things, they had started to suspect she might be psychic but she couldn't do most of the things a psychic could, leaving them bewildered. Summer returned holding the envelope out to her mother.

"Thank you Sweetheart, I'll open it later," Violet told her then nodded towards Summer's unfinished dinner as a silent hint.

That night, when Tony had gone back home and everyone was settling down for the night Violet opened the envelope. She pulled out a folded note and a scrap of old newspaper. It was a picture of her family in their super suits from an article about when they had emerged, confused she read the note to see if it explained the mysterious clipping.

_My Dear Violet,_

Though it has been six years since I first saw you I still remember it perfectly. It was as though that moment lasted forever but ended all too quickly. You were reading when a tear slid down your cheek, I promise when I see you I'll return the book, but for now here's your old bookmark.

I still love you,

W.


	9. Chapter 9

Months passed, and like clockwork Violet would receive an unmarked letter with some memento of Wilbur. Photos, old movie stubs and once a small teddy bear that she had won for Wilbur when they had gone to a fair. And with each little gift there was a memory, their first kiss, memories of what was happening at the time the photos were taken. Violet kept the letters secret from Tony, she wondered if Wilbur came back. Why would he though? It had been years since they had seen each other. But in the letters there were things that no one else could know. Private jokes and memories only they shared.

Wilbur was getting worried, being around Tony almost every day. He now knew that Tony's Violet was indeed Violet Parr and it took his every ounce of strength not to do something he'd regret.

Unfortunately, fate has a habit of making things difficult for people in love.

Wilbur had moved up in the ranks a bit in the months that had passed, he was still a documenter but he had been given more important jobs to document and was being considered for a promotion to assist a design team. He had even been given his own office. And that's where the trouble came. Tony had needed to stop by Wilbur's office to drop off some new information about the apartment complex but Wilbur wasn't there.p.  
The door was open so Tony decided to just drop of the documents with a post it attached explaining what they were and he'd be on his way. Looking on Wilbur's desk for a pen he noticed a picture frame. Tony was curious, Will wasn't one who spoke of his family or anyone in his life. He picked up the picture and gasped. It was an older shot that much was obvious, Will looked a little less worn and genuinely happy. The girl in the photo with him was unmistakably Violet. A little older than she had been when he had left for art school and her hair was the longest he had ever seen it.

Suddenly it clicked. Will was Vi's old boyfriend Wilbur. The one who had gotten her pregnant with Summer and then vanished. Why did he have Violet's photo on his desk years later when, from what Violet had told him, he had never contacted her again since that day. Tony took a seat and waited for Wilbur to return.

About five minutes later Wilbur came in carrying a fast food drink and finishing off the last bit of fries. He was confused when he saw Tony sitting at his desk waiting for him but he put down his things like nothing was out of the ordinary.

"Hey Tony, what's up?" He asked trying to be casual, he found he had to try, and fake, a lot with Tony.

"I was wondering if you could explain this?" Tony asked holding up the picture frame that he still held in his hands. "You know, Vi told me about you. How you stuck around long enough to get one thing from her then left, never to be heard from again-"

"Tony, that's not how-" Wilbur tried to interrupt but Tony just spoke louder over top of his voice.

"Leaving Vi, heartbroken, depressed and pregnant," Wilbur's mind froze at that moment, pregnant? Violet had gotten pregnant? But it was their first time and he'd had a condom. Maybe it broke and they didn't notice. Did she keep the baby? He hadn't seen any signs of a child but he hadn't really been looking. Then he thought back to Viola's older sister, the one with blue tipped hair he had seen smile at him from the window. He remembered how familiar her eyes were and now he knew why. They were that same eyes he had, and his mother as well. Tony's words washed over him as he realized he was a father. That he had a daughter who was five years old and he never knew.

"Are you even listening to me?" Tony demanded, angrily he lashed out and punched Wilbur in the jaw. Torn out of his thought's Wilbur retaliated letting all of his pent up anger and frustration towards Tony come out. Luckily not too many punches were thrown before coworkers stepped in and broke up the fight.

Wilbur had a deep gash on his jaw from a ring Tony had been wearing and a black eye. Tony had a broken nose and a few bruises. Tony was taken to the hospital while Wilbur was handed an ice pack and a demand for an explanation. Wilbur told his boss, and several coworkers who had been eavesdropping were able to confirm his statement, that Tony had thrown the first punch and Wilbur had retaliated.

One thing he refused to do was discuss what the fight had been about.

Going home that night Wilbur checked his calendar, doing the math he figured his daughter's birthday would be right around when Violet's was. He quickly wrote Violet a letter asking her to meet him at the usual place, and to bring their daughter.

He dropped off the letter in person at Violet's house like he usually did and was about to leave when he noticed a little girl sitting on a blanket with tea cups around her watching him. Wilbur looked around to see if anyone was outside with her but she seemed to be alone.

"Mommy went to the hospital and Uncle Jack had to answer the phone, He told me to wait here." The girl said answering his unasked question. "Daddy, how come I never got to see you before?" She asked getting up and going over to him.

"How do you know I'm your dad?" He asked kneeling to get down to her level.

"I can see your colours," she said simply.

"I'm sorry I haven't been around to see you but I had to go somewhere very far away for a while." He wasn't sure what 'seeing colours' meant but he assumed it had something to do with her powers as a super.

"Are you going to come back?"

"If I'm wanted, but for now I have to go. But I've got something for you, and for your mom," he told her opening a small shopping bag and taking out a stuffed octopus and a small box. "Will you give her the box for me?" He asked as he handed Summer the box and the stuffed animal.

"I will. Thank you for the octopus Daddy," Summer said giving Wilbur a hug. "You probably have to go now huh?"  
"Yes I do but I'll see you again," he told her standing up.

"My name's Summer," she called after him as he walked down the street. A couple minutes later Jack came out of the house with a pink feather boa around his shoulders. "Okay back to tea time Uncle Jack," Summer told him as she set up a tea cup for her new octopus.

"Did someone come by while I was on the phone?" He asked looking around, he could've sworn he had heard someone.

"Nope," Summer lied making sure that the small box and letter were hidden in her pocket. She'd give them to Mommy when she got home.

The next day Wilbur waited at Java, the hut with his usual drink for Violet. It was her day off so she had to come in on her own time. After about ten minutes of waiting he saw Violet come in, alone.

"Where's Summer?" Wilbur asked as Violet sat down across from him.

"I asked Jack to watch her. Closely this time so she doesn't go taking gifts from strangers. You had no business talking to her and I don't want her to be here right now."

"Violet, I'm sorry I left, I-"

"You shouldn't have come here Wilbur," Violet said angrily but quietly to avoid stares. She had cycled through the emotion since he had disappeared. She'd been sad, numb, accepting and now she was angry. "I waited for you for almost seven years. I have a fiancé now, and you waited until three weeks before the wedding to reveal yourself to me?" Pain and defensiveness flashed through Wilbur's eyes but he remained quiet, he knew Violet needed to say all the things she hadn't been able to say for years. "Anyway, why are you here? What did you think would happen?"

"I wanted to tell you what happened. I thought you had the right to know why I never came back. The time machines were-"

"What business is it of mine?" She demanded cutting him off. "You left me alone and pregnant. Now you're back. That was years ago. Why should it mean anything to me?"

"I- I'm sorry," he said finally looking down.

"Well what did you expect would happen? That I'd come rushing back into your arms? Well your timing is pretty terrible. You've been back for at least ten months and I'm only seeing you now." She'd carefully kept their love safe for all these years in her mind but now she wanted it gone. Broken down and burned until there was nothing left. She wanted him to argue but he didn't.

"I'm sorry for everything," he said finally as he got up, it was the last thing she heard him say before he left.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Weeks passed and the day before the wedding Wilbur stopped by Java, the hut and asked Violet if they could talk. She was doing one last shift before the wedding and honey moon.

"I know I shouldn't be here, I just wanted you to know that I'm leaving for my time tomorrow. For good. I won't bother you or Tony or- or Summer ever again," he said quietly, he was glad that at the very least he had been able to meet his daughter, if only for a very short time.

"We always end up here don't we?" Violet said with a small sigh. "It's hard you know, being left behind, being the one who stays."

"I have something to tell you. Remember when you asked if I expected you to rush back into my arms? Well, that is what I thought in a way. I knew you wouldn't come back to me right away so I left you notes to remind you how much I loved you and I hoped you would come back. I imagined the life we could have. My parents gave me some clothes and money to last a few months. I got a job and an apartment near you because I imagined that you'd come back to me and we'd be together forever."

"But now you're leaving again." She said matter of factly.  
"Yes. Going back at the same time I had first appeared here."

"We can almost imagine away all the things that happened since then."

"But we can't. The past becomes a part of you, even when it hurts."

"So I guess we should say good-bye."

"Yeah, well good luck with everything Violet. I hope you'll be happy."

"You too. Good bye Wilbur."

Wilbur gave her a small wrapped box then left. He had plenty of packing to do for tomorrow, luckily one of the guys from the firm had told him he'd find someone to take his apartment. He still loved Violet with all his heart but he knew he had to let her go. Even though it killed him to do it.


	10. Chapter 10

The next day Violet was looking in the mirror, doing a final touch up when she remembered the wrapped box that Wilbur had given her. She retrieved it from her purse and opened it, revealing a beautiful locket with a violet on the front. Glancing around to make sure she was still alone she opened the locket. Where pictures were supposed to be go it was mirrored, looking into the box there was a note.

_Violet,_

_I want you to promise me something, I'm sorry I'm asking you this way but I have a feeling if I had asked you in person you wouldn't listen. Promise me that whenever you're sad, or unsure, or you lose hope, try to see yourself through my eyes. I was just a chapter in your life, but you made mine, thank you for making me the man I am, you changed me by loving me the way you did back then. Every morning I still wake up and the first thing I want to do is see your face, but I've accepted that you've chosen someone else. Be happy, live a long life and have lots of children and grandchildren. I'll see you again someday I hope._

_Love always,_

_Wilbur_

She put down the note and looked at the locket again when she realized something. Wilbur was the only one outside her family who ever called her Violet. Everyone else called her Vi. Without knowing why Violet took off the string of pearls she wore around her neck and put the locket in its place. Suddenly there was a knock on the door, Violet spun around and quickly tossed the note and box back into her purse.

"Are you ready Sweetie?" Helen asked opening the door. She was followed by Bob, Summer and the bridesmaids.

"Oh Violet, you look beautiful," Bob told her as he held out his arm. Resting her hand on his arm she nodded to the bridesmaids that she was ready, so with Summer at the front they began the procession.

"I love you Daddy," Violet said softly as they approached the aisle. The music began to play and everyone turned to face her. Keeping her eyes on Tony Violet walked down the aisle and stopped in front of the minister.

"Dearly beloved we are gathered here today…"

Violet's thoughts drifted as the minister spoke, at first she thought about years ago, when she was in junior high and she had a crush on Tony and how they had started dating. But then her thoughts drifted away from Tony and someone else's face filled her mind.

She found herself remembering when they first met, how nervous Wilbur had been but he had been perfectly honest with her when he told her that she terrified him. She remembered their dates, the smiles and laughs they had shared over the short period of time that they had been together.

And she remembered that night. The night under the meteor shower, the music. Then she remembered the days after, but strangely it didn't hurt the way it used to, remembering what had happened.

Tony cleared his throat and Violet snapped out of her reverie.

"Do you, Tony Edward Rydinger, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife, to love and to cherish, in sickness and in health, forsaking all others until death do you part?"

"I do." The minister nodded solemnly then turned to face Violet.

"And do you, Violet Roberta Parr, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband, to love and to cherish, in sickness and in health, forsaking all others until death do you part?"


	11. Chapter 11

_It was a perfect sunny day, the wind was gentle and the clouds were soft and white._

"I miss those days. I wonder if that's alright, missing those days because I loved them so much. The more you love something the harder it is to say good bye I guess."

A little girl wandered through the house peeking in each room, looking for something. Finally she made her way to the kitchen where her mother was making cookies with her older brother and sister. All three looked up when she entered the room.

"Mommy where's Invisigirl and the Hunter?" The girl asked dropping her ragged stuffed octopus, that had seen better days, on the table and sneaking a bite of cookie dough.

"Hey, young lady, that's Grandma and Grandpa to you," Summer admonished shaking her mixing spoon at her youngest daughter.

"But Legs and I are having tea with our special guests Invisigirl and the Hunter. Retired supers always have cool stories to tell for tea time. Besides they told me I could call them by their old super names if I wanted." The girl argued stubbornly.

"Grandma and Grandpa are on a walk," Summer said with a sigh knowing it was a lost cause trying to argue with her. Only seven but stubborn as anyone could be.

"Aw, they left me behind again!" The girl pouted crossing her arms. Her brother handed her a cookie that had cooled down enough to eat.

"Here you go Ariel, Melody and I can have tea with you if you want. We can be Mercury and Electrode if you want a super tea party."

"That's a good idea Eric," Summer said putting the last batch of cookies in the oven. "You won't be getting in the way of their alone time and you'll still get two supers to have tea with."

Ariel nodded and picked up her hand me down octopus, she had newer toys but the octopus was her favourite just like it had been both of her siblings' favourite and her mother's favourite. "They're always together, holding hands," Ariel whined as she headed to her room with her siblings.

"You know something Wilbur? I miss those days too sometimes. But we kept moving forward, repeating the good and the bad. We did it all and piled on the years. You know what they say 'those who love deeply never grown old; they may die of old age, but they die young.' I'm feeling a little tired, why don't we have a nap when we get back. We'll do Ariel's tea party after we've rested," Violet told him, her arms linked through his as they walked together back towards their family home. Once inside, after telling Ariel they were going to take a short nap, Violet and Wilbur laid down together on their bed.

The walls and shelves marked the passage of years and told a story filled with knickknacks and photos. Wilbur watch Violet sleep for a moment then closed his eyes as well.

_There are no monuments dedicated to Wilbur Gladstone or Robinson and under those names I have done no great deeds and my name will soon be forgotten. But I've loved another with all my heart and soul. I have travel across space and time to be with her and to me, this has always been enough._

_When I prepared to leave that day in June I finally understood what true love meant; it meant that you care for another person's happiness more than your own, no matter how painful the choices you face might be. I love Violet. I am who I am because of her. She is my every reason, every hope, and every dream I've ever had, and no matter what happens in the future, every day we are together is the greatest day of my life. Every minute we spent together has been seared in my memory and I won't forget a single moment of it. _

_Our story had three parts, a beginning, a middle and an end. The beginning was meeting her at our café, the middle was the painful years we spent apart and the end wasn't when she ran to me, her white gown billowing in the wind, it wasn't when we had more children and grandchildren our ending is now. And, although this is the way all stories go, since the dawn of time, I still find it hard to believe ours didn't last forever._


End file.
